From the Sun-Sentinel: General Motors plans to close 35 dealerships in Florida as part of a restructuring plan that winds down 1,323 dealers nationwide by October 2010, executives from the troubled carmaker told a U.S. House committee Friday.

Pennsylvania stands to lose the most GM dealers: 90, followed by Ohio with 79, Illinois with 66 and California with 65, the company informed the Energy and Commerce committee’s oversight and inestigation’s subcommittee. Only Alaska is spared shutdowns.

GM has declined to identify individual dealerships set to wind down, offering only the state-by-state breakdown so far.In South Florida, Pines Pontiac GMC Buick, 16100 Pines Blvd., Pembroke Pines, is contesting GM’s plan to end the franchise, owner Craig Zinn has said.

Florida’s tally of 35 dealer closings is relatively small, considering that the state has the third largest vehicle fleet iin the country.

Rick Baker, president of the South Florida Auto-Truck Dealers Association, has said the area is not as “overdealered” as some other U.S. areas, partly because Floridians rely more on their cars and have less options for mass transit.